Reputation
by Aimeesworld
Summary: Sara is drunk and Nick doesn't know what's going on. The world is so much nicer upside down.


_Disclaimer: Do not own. Never will. Am gutted.  
Let me know what you think. Sweet Snickers fluff. No plot to speak of._**  
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**Reputation**

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**Nick Stokes was somewhat surprised when he found Sara Sidle on his doorstep at the three in the morning.

He had woken up to movement outside and, to be perfectly honest, it had terrified him. So he'd grabbed his gun and had headed for the front door to his appartment. Moonlight watered down on the stoop through the windows across the hall and Nick saw a familiar dark head – that of Sara Sidle, his colleague and erstwhile friend.

"Sara?"

She looked up and Nick could see that she was drunk. Her beautiful eyes were blurry and her skin was flushed. "Hi Nicky."

He grabbed her and pulled her upright. "What are you doing here?"

"Grissom sent me off the case," she said. "Told me to get some rest. But I can't sleep, Nicky."

"So you got piss-drunk and then came here?"

"How'd you know? Wow, you should be a criminalist or something. I'm a criminalist."

Nick was amazed that she could say the word 'criminalist' in her present state. "I'm getting you inside," he said.

She shrugged and went to stand. Nick was struck by how tall she was. He didn't notice it at work, when she was hunched over the computer, or her cup of coffee, but, swaying as though on one leg, she was a tower – possibly not of strength but there was something noble about her pose that night.

Then she fell into his doorway and the image was somewhat turned about.

Once Sara was seated at the kitchen table with a glass of water in front of her, Nick asked, "So why did you come here?"

"Is this interrogation, Nicky?" she asked, tiredly.

He shrugged.

She giggled and shifted so her head was looking under the table. "Look! The world is so much nicer upside down!"

"You are going to regret this in the morning." He wouldn't have thought Sara Sidle's emotions would escalate from depressed to ridiculous in little more than a minute.

She took a sip of water. "I guess that's why I came here."

"Huh?"

"You won't let me do anything that I'll regret."

"Is this in reference to Grissom?"

She gulped the rest of the glass and lost a little of the vague quality in her eyes. "Last year I used to fantasise all the time about Grissom and I. We would get married; it was always a very nice ceremony. We would honeymoon and buy our first house in the suburbs and have children and never be nasty to them and grow old together, sitting on a porch and listening to the crickets."

"You honestly wanted to marry him?" There was an odd gulp behind Nick's voice, like he was trying not to choke up and he couldn't quite understand why except perhaps that she looked so incredibly sad at that moment and more like a little girl than ever.

"Yes, what's wrong with that?" She snapped and the vulnerable moment was gone.

"It's just Sara Grissom is a terrible name," he said, grinning. "Now, Sara Stokes on the other hand … Hot."

"Thank you, but I'll be keeping my own name if I get married," she replied tartly. "Also, Sara Sanders sounds better than Sara Stokes you vain prick."

Nick snorted. "Sanders? Honestly? Really scraping the bottom of the barrel there, Sidle."

"I think I reached rock bottom when I got to you, Nicky," she said, poking her tongue out at him and grinning. "Besides, why wouldn't you take the name of your partner?"

"Nick Brown, you mean?"

"Ew," was her eloquent reply.

"That's so rude, Sara. What if I was gay? I'd hope you'd still stand by me."

"Yeah, course," she said impatiently. "It's just it doesn't sound nearly as good as Nick Sidle."

"Wow, we're so made for each other," Nick replied.

She raised her eyebrows and yawned. "I'm sleepy, Nicky."

"Do you want me to drive you home?"

She wrinkled her nose. "No, my house has too many memories. I won't sleep there. Do you have a spare bed?"

"You can have mine, sunshine."

She laughed. "You're so silly Nicky. That was a bad rhyme."

"Come on, we'll get you to bed."

He helped her to his room. As soon as she hit the bed, she was asleep. He gently, so as not to disturb her, took off her shoes and pulled the blankets around her.

"Night Sara." She murmured contentedly and he left the room.

He'd sleep on the couch tonight.


End file.
